Bradley Wiggins may defend Tour de France title in 2013

BRADLEY Wiggins is likely to defend his Tour de France title after all next year despite saying the Giro d'Italia would be his main objective.

The 32-year-old Olympics time-trial gold medallist became the Tour's first British winner last July, with Team Sky colleague Chris Froome second.

At October's launch of next summer's 100th Tour Wiggins intimated May's Tour of Italy would be his priority, leaving the way clear for Froome to lead Sky's Tour assault.

But yesterday Wiggins told BBC Radio Five: "I don't know what the situation is in terms of leadership, as it stands I'm probably going to try and win a second Tour de France.

"I don't know, maybe we'll have two leaders, which is more than likely I guess. How that's going to work with the team I don't know, that's more (Team Sky general manager) Dave Brailsford's problem to worry about."

He added: "It's just how we service both mouths. Like I said that's more a problem for Dave to figure out, but my goal is to win the Tour next year.

"Whether that is realised or not I don't know really, we're still in this planning phase at the moment, deciding each race, what we're going to do next year, how we are going to go about training to do that.

"Whether I do the Tour of Italy before it, as I've said that is still undecided. All will be revealed in the coming months I guess."

If Froome is chosen to lead Team Sky, Wiggins insists he will support his teammate.

"Oh yeah, I wouldn't be on the start line if not," he said.

"Whatever the team strategy is we all support that, otherwise you don't take the start line because there'll be somebody else that is willing to fulfil that job.

"It's a case of you do what's asked of you on the day, whatever that decision is."

Last month Wiggins was admitted to hospital after being hit by a car while riding his bike near his family home in Lancashire.

He suffered broken ribs and a wrist injury in the accident in which he was thrown from his bike by a car pulling out of a petrol station.